When you use the DS CLI, the application provides messages regarding the application processes, status, and errors. You also receive the OpenVMS system messages but they are displayed in a different format. You can make this situation less confusing by making the following adjustments.
The DS CLI messages are presented in an operating-system independent format. In contrast, native OpenVMS programs provide messages using the system message facility as displayed in the following format: %facility-level-identification, text.
To ensure that the OpenVMS command SET MESSAGE and customer-written tools that scan for such messages work correctly, the DS CLI provides each message using OpenVMS system services in addition to the operating system independent output. After displaying the OpenVMS message, the normal DS CLI message is provided unchanged. This ensures that the DS CLI messages are identical across platforms and that you can work with the DS CLI documentation.
However, these redundant messages can be confusing for users who are not familiar with OpenVMS. You can use the OpenVMS logical name IBMDSCLI$OPENVMS_MESSAGES to modify the DS CLI behavior: If this logical name translates to an expression which evaluates as True in OpenVMS conventions (1, Y, YES, T, or TRUE), then the additional OpenVMS-formatted messages are presented. Otherwise, only the operating system independent DS CLI messages are shown.
The startup procedure IBMDSCLI$STARTUP.COM defines the logical name IBMDSCLI$OPENVMS_MESSAGES as Y. If you want to suppress the OpenVMS-formatted messages, you can redefine the logical name after the startup procedure has been processed.